Washington ? American taxpayers are helping to foot the bill so foreign writers can savor California wine.

Subsidized by the Agriculture Department and the wineries, the writers from Canada, Europe and Asia tour some of this country’s most renowned wine regions, and winemakers say their stories boost foreign sales. Lawmakers agree, and they want to increase funding in the new farm bill that senators will consider this week.

“If it’s helping to sell wine, it’s good,” said Rep. Devin Nunes, a Republican who represents the rich agricultural area around Fresno in California’s Central Valley.

Others aren’t so sure.

Budget hawks question the use of taxpayer dollars. The wine writer tours are a small part of the Market Access Program, which the House of Representatives wants to increase to $225 million a year from the current $200 million.

Journalism professionals worry less about the cost and more about the propriety of writers who accept free trips and produce stories that resemble advertising.

“This is a violation of fundamental journalism ethics,” said Michael Shanahan, a longtime reporter and now an assistant professor of journalism at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. “At the very least, it’s the appearance of a conflict of interest, if not the reality.”

“We have achieved very good media attention from lifestyle journalists,” the Wine Institute reported to the Agriculture Department in a document obtained by McClatchy Newspapers under the Freedom of Information Act.

The San Francisco-based Wine Institute represents most U.S. wineries. It received $4.5 million this year from the Agriculture Department’s Market Access Program, more than most organizations that received funding.

The Wine Institute also contributes money for overseas advertising, conferences, tours and more. With annual U.S. wine exports now valued at $1.2 billion and climbing, wine industry leaders consider the marketing program a success.

“It allows us to be competitive with every other major wine-producing country,” said Joe Rollo, the Institute’s director of international development. “Without it, I don’t know if we would have the same track record of success.”